My Little Beastie
by Hadassa J
Summary: A Disney twist to TWxPG, based on the film 'Maleficent'.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: _Update 8/7/2014: This is the same story as before, I just divided it into chapters rather than one huge story :)_

After a long, brutal week of final exams, I decided to see _Maleficent_, and I really enjoyed it! _My Little Beastie_ is a Legion of Superheroes AU fanfiction that blends elements from the canon Legion-verse with the enchanting plot of Disney's _Maleficent_. This fic contains SPOILERS, including direct lines from the film/trailers. If you have not seen _Maleficent_, I highly recommend doing so ^_^

I apologize for any sloppiness, this was written rather quickly and more or less on impulse from my pure fascination with the film, Jolie's beauty, and how the plot can work so well with so many of my favorite pairings.

The Legion of Superheroes is owned by DC Comics, Inc. _Maleficent_ is owned by Disney.

...

A little boy ran through the forest, laughing and jumping with the animals around him.

"You can't catch me!" he screamed, and climbed up a tree, a few squirrels scurrying up alongside him in zigzag patterns.

Not all the animals of the woodlands were considered "normal" animals. Some were unusual, mysterious-looking creatures that were feared by the humans. However, the little human child did not fear them at all. In fact, they were the boy's closest friends.

The little boy let go of the branch he was swinging on and was caught in the arms of one of these creatures. They hugged and laughed, but then a device on the boy's wrist started beeping and blinking.

"Uh oh, time fo me go home now," the boy said. The creature set him on the ground and they all waved goodbye as they watched the boy run off.

The boy's mother was not happy when he arrived home. "Brin, were you playing in the Rawlian woods again?"

The little boy put his arms behind his back and shook his head no. The mother clearly saw the leaves and twigs caught in his hair, shirt, and shorts. She grabbed the boy's arm and hit his bottom twice, making the boy wail. "Ooww! Why you do dat!" the little boy asked between cries and hiccups. The mother made her way to the window and looked out, but her gaze was distant, beyond anything any eyes could see.

"Beware the Rawlian beasts, my son," the mother said, eyes welling with angry tears. "They are evil. They are not humans like us… And they steal our loved ones away."

"No!" the boy shouted, and ran to his room, slamming the door behind him.

…..Years later…..

"Hey! Let me go! Let me go!" a young, orange, shape-shifting beast yelled, struggling to escape the cyber-generated net he was trapped in. He had been calmly making his way through a clearing in the forest when a poacher caught him.

"Beast! I'll get millions for your head! Hahaha!" the poacher man yelled back, cackling at his catch. He immediately stopped laughing when he heard a menacing growl behind him. The poacher man turned around and his eyes widened and he began quivering in fear. Standing behind him was a massive grey wolf, bearing his teeth and snarling at him.

"Oh… my…" but before the man could utter another word, the large wolf grabbed his collar with his jaws and threw him hundreds of yards in the distance. The man screamed as he soared through the air and fell into a river.

The young shape-shifter turned back to the wolf and cowered, hoping he wasn't next.

But the wolf did not attack him. Instead, the orange creature watched as the large beast transformed into a man. He was still grey, and he still had ears, but he stood tall on two feet, and wore a long black jacket and black pants with a white belt.

"Woah, you can change forms too!" the orange boy declared, green eyes wide in astonishment.

"Not quite like you," said the beast-turned-man. He regarded the orange youth with his cold, piercing stare, which most humans found hostile and threatening. But the boy was not frightened; instead, he was rather joyful and smiling at him. The wolf-man narrowed his eyes.

"What's your name?"

"I'm known in the forest as Chameleon Boy, but you can just call me Cham, hehe!"

"Chameleon Boy… Yes, I have heard of you," the wolf-man said slowly, in a low tone. He turned and faced the distance, "The beast that can turn into anything. And anyone."

Chameleon Boy regarded the taller man, whose jacket and waist-length hair blew behind him in the wind. "What about you? What's your name?"

"Timber Wolf."

Cham froze for a moment before whispering, "No way… You-You're the ruler of Rawl…" he immediately bowed, multiple times. His parents told him all the stories; all the brave battles Timber Wolf fought, all the times he protected the woodlands from the humans. Never in his life did he think he would actually meet Timber Wolf in person. When Cham looked up again, Timber Wolf was already walking away towards the hills.

"Huh?" Cham said, and quickly rushed up beside Timber Wolf. He didn't want this moment to pass him by. It wasn't like he got to meet a king every day. He wanted to talk to him more, maybe even be his friend. Cham giggled to himself.

"What's so funny?" Timber Wolf asked, slightly irritated that the boy was now following him.

"You could have been a bit nicer you know," Cham said. "The dude probably shat in his pants."

Timber Wolf growled down at him. Cham's antennae pulled down in fear and he looked down. He continued to follow Timber Wolf up the hill until they reached the top, where they viewed the big, high-tech city. Cham knew the city well; its tall, white towers that reached the skies, the cars gliding along the virtual expressways. The young shape-shifter could always find food there to feed his family. He was also well aware of his parents' concerns that the city was growing too large, and could possibly soon destroy their forest home, Rawl, to expand their technological habitat.

He turned back to Timber Wolf, who regarded the city with an expression Cham couldn't read.

"H-How can I repay you… for saving my life?" Cham asked.

Timber Wolf's golden eyes narrowed at the boy again, a bit concerned that the bright and cheerful demeanor of this young creature would clash with his dark and more reserved one. However, he couldn't ignore how useful Cham's abilities were. He looked towards the city again, this time towards the Presidential house, as he thought of a plan.

"I need you to be my spy."


	2. Chapter 2

"Madame President, I'd like to introduce you to one of our new interns, Reep Daggle," the administrative advisor said to Winema Wazzo in one of the Presidential house hallways.

"Nice to meet you," the President offered her hand to Reep, a suited, slender young man with red-orange hair, freckles, and cheerful bright-green eyes.

"The honor is all mine, President Wazzo," he said, shaking her hand.

"He'll be following Diane on Tuesday and giving a report on your speech to the galactic senate," the administrative advisor informed the President before saluting and leaving.

"Right this way, Reep, we'll get you all set up," said the President as she handed him a digital file. Just then she spotted her daughter, Tinya, who spotted _her_ at the same time and tried to duck away.

"Young lady, come here," the Commander in Chief said sternly. Tinya winced as she reluctantly walked over to them, with noticeable leaves and twigs stuck in her hair. Reep chuckled to himself. He knew Tinya, very well actually, but Tinya didn't know Reep was Cham.

Chameleon Boy remembered the day he met the President's daughter. Timber Wolf, in his beast form, was walking through the forest on one of his evening watches. Cham was nearby, as always, in whatever animal form his king needed him to be in, this time it was a bird. Cham flew ahead to survey the land and warn Timber Wolf of any human presence, when he saw little Tinya. He swooped down and landed in front of her.

"Pretty bird!" she giggled. Cham shape-shifted into his usual form, with antennae and big green eyes, thinking it would scare her away, but instead it made her more excited.

"Ooh wow! So cool!"

They quickly became friends, and chatted for a while before Cham felt Timber Wolf's presence nearby.

"Uh oh," Cham said before getting in front of Tinya. A menacing growl was heard from behind the trees before Timber Wolf emerged, barking angrily.

"Timber Wolf, calm down, it's just a child!" said Cham.

"No humans are allowed here!" Timber Wolf growled, his beastly yellow eyes fiercely glaring at them.

"Wow! A talking dog!" the girl ran around Cham and went right up to Timber Wolf to pet him. Timber Wolf stared at her incredulously before swatting her hand away with his paw.

"What's wrong with you? Don't you know danger when it's right in front of you?" the beast asked.

"But you're not dangerous," the girl replied. "You're the coolest dog in the world and I want you as my pet!"

Timber Wolf snarled. "Shut up and get out of here, only beasts can dwell in the Rawlian jungles."

"Well, then I wanna be a beast too!" she jumped up and down and came up to him and kissed his snout. Timber Wolf recoiled, growling at her again, but this time his growl was more annoyed than angry.

"Tch, then you're one stubborn little beast," Timber Wolf said, turning to leave. "She's just some lost child, Cham. Guide her out of Rawl before her parents start looking for her here."

"Actually, she's the President's daughter," Cham informed him. Timber Wolf froze in his tracks, but they couldn't see his expression as his back was turned to them.

"All the more reason why she should never return," Timber Wolf said before disappearing behind the trees.

But the girl came back the next day, and the next. Timber Wolf let her be; he hated repeating himself. If she didn't want to acknowledge apparent danger, that was her problem. She'd just get killed someday and forgotten, like a rebellious baby bird that didn't heed its mother's warning to stay in the safety of their nest.

But as the wolf-king watched the child play so freely and happily in his territory, he naturally became more interested in what the stubborn little beast was up to. Cham _really_ enjoyed her presence, and Timber Wolf had to admit it was a breath of fresh air to finally have a human that wasn't out-right scared of him. What got him the most, though, was that the one human that didn't fear them was the President's own daughter.

One day Tinya was playing with some rabbit-like beasts and got her foot caught in a branch. She was around twelve then. Timber Wolf watched apathetically from a tree as the preteen struggled and failed to untangle herself. Sighing and rolling his eyes, the wolf jumped down and with a sharp claw easily cut the branch to free her foot.

"Thank you!" she said, giving him a hug. Timber Wolf stiffened until she let go.

"Run along now, you stubborn little beast," he said, annoyed that she had breached his privacy yet again. Tinya just laughed and ran off. The beast raised his eyebrow; what was it that made her like this place so much? He remembered his own childhood and briefly wondered how it would be if all humans liked Rawl, before shaking the silly thought away.

The King and the shape-shifter watched the girl grow and make friends with more of the forests creatures, becoming well-known in the Rawlian kingdom as the friendly human. However, there would be the occasional beast or animal that would just view her as food and try to attack her. Timber Wolf would always be nearby to subdue the animal, protecting her from any harm.

Before Timber Wolf knew it, he had grown a soft spot for the girl, and his annoying 'stubborn little beast' gradually became 'his little beastie' as she learned the ways of Rawl. But as she grew and blossomed, Timber Wolf showed himself to her less frequently, for he knew that once she became an adult she would learn to hate the Rawlian beasts like the other humans did. It was best for her to forget about him. He never revealed his human-like form to her, never told her he was king. He contently settled with just watching her from afar, making sure she kept out of danger. Chameleon Boy always stayed by her side.

Reep snapped back to the present when Winema Wazzo scolded her daughter.

"Tinya you are sixteen years old, what are you still doing playing in that forest?!"

"But mom I love it there!"

"Enough! I have forbidden you to go there but apparently my words mean nothing to you. From now on you will be watched closely any time you leave this house. Girls!" the President called and three young women digitally appeared before them.

"These are the Durgo sisters. They will be with you anytime you are not in school or at home. I figure it's best to have girls your own age you can relate to and shop with, rather than one of my grown, male guards," the President explained.

"Gross! Look at her hair!" the Orange one grimaced.

"You smell like trees," the Purple triplet added.

"Don't listen to them, come on, we'll get you all beautified again!" the White sister grabbed Tinya and they all left.

Reep chuckled at the scene and shook his head before looking back down at his digital file, scrolling through it as the President discussed the latest political and economic reports, but he stopped when he got to a particular page. His eyes widened when he skimmed the title and first paragraph. His nervous eyes shifted towards the President before interrupting her.

"My apologies Madame President, but I think the administrator forgot to mention that I had a meeting at 2 with one of the legal representatives."

"Oh! Alright, I probably shouldn't bombard you with too much information all at once, as I know how busy you interns get. I'll see you again next week."

They shook hands and Reep left, but instead of going where he told the President he would go, Reep took the high speed elevator back down to the ground floor and exited the building.

Back in the familiar seclusion of the Rawlian woodlands, Chameleon Boy was still in his human form as he called out, "Timber Wolf? Timber Wolf! There's something you need to see."

After a few moments, Timber Wolf's beast form emerged from the trees, his yellow eyes glowing in the darkness.

"Your majesty," Cham got down on one knee and bowed as he held up the digital file. Timber Wolf changed to his humanoid form and took it.

"Article 8, Operation 571… It's what we've always feared," Cham swallowed, hesitantly looking up at his leader, whose eyes quickly scanned the file. With every sentence, his expression changed from growing concern to raging fury.

Timber Wolf roared, and threw the digital file at a tree. The file was obliterated on impact, its tiny digital bits vaporizing in the air.

"Hey, I needed that…" Cham mumbled, scratching his head.

"How much time do we have?" Timber Wolf growled. He was extremely agitated, pacing back and forth.

"Well, if you hadn't destroyed the file – "

"How much _fucking_ time do we have Cham I will _not_ ask you again!"

The young man's green eyes looked down and to the side as he swallowed again before answering, "One month."

Timber Wolf put a hand on a nearby tree to steady himself. He wanted to sink to his knees, but instead he took a deep a breath and closed his eyes. A king must stand on his own two feet.

He reopened his eyes, whose color burned a wrathful, fiery yellow. His anger did not dampen, it was simply refocused.

"Inform every beast, every creature. Let it be known that I, Timber Wolf, have declared war on the humans, and to prepare to fight."

…..

That evening, Timber Wolf was in his beast form walking through the forest. Cham was in his bird form, flying high in the air, well above the trees and away from the Rawlian king. Cham knew that Timber Wolf had been in a sour mood all day, so if he felt like hitting, biting, or scratching anything it sure as heck wasn't going to be him!

Up ahead, they both saw Tinya rushing towards the forest, with three women chasing after her.

Timber Wolf climbed up a tree, expertly leaping from branch to branch. He settled on a large, sturdy branch and watched the scene closely.

Cham swooped down and changed to his normal form and crouched beside Timber Wolf.

"Well well, what's the little beastie up to now?" Timber Wolf asked to no one in particular. Cham side-glanced at his king, who was looking down at Tinya with a smirk on his face. It did not evade the shape-shifter's attention how the young woman's presence calmed down Timber Wolf's fiercest tempers. It was as if she was a pleasant distraction, or a mood-lifting drug, that allowed the beast-king to forget his burdens, and his past.

"Tinya! Get back here!" the Orange woman called from down below.

"Wazzo will have our heads!" the White one grumbled, out of breath.

"This is your fault," the Purple one said to the Orange. "I told you Tinya wasn't telling us the right directions to the mall!"

"Focus, girls!" the White one said as they caught up to Tinya and surrounded her. They grabbed her and Tinya shouted and struggled to pull her arms out of their grip.

Timber Wolf got up and let out an angry growl at the scene below him.

"What was that?" the three women asked each other, frightfully looking around. In their distraction, Tinya used the opportunity to yank herself away and make a run for it. Before the women could go any further, Timber Wolf leaped down and landed in front of them, and released a mighty roar, and the three women screamed and ran for their lives.

Somewhere deeper in the forest, Tinya stopped running and gasped when she heard the roar. She stopped in her tracks, wondering what to do next.

Meanwhile, Cham leaped down to the grass and watched the tri-colored women run away. He looked at Timber Wolf, who was staring off into the direction Tinya ran. Timber Wolf transformed into his humanoid form, with his black pants and long, black jacket, and made his way through the trees. Cham changed into a bird and followed from above.

A few minutes later, Tinya developed an unsettling feeling in the pit of her belly, as though she was being watched. She slowly spun around, looking nervously in all directions of the dark green woods.

"Cham?" she asked to the air, but no one answered. She turned, but then froze when she saw a pair of unique, almond-shaped eyes regarding her behind the trees. Tinya had seen these intense, golden orbs before, etched in her memory like a beautiful nightmare never forgotten.

"Hello?" the girl started, hesitant and careful. But the creature did not utter a word.

"Please come out," the girl took a step forward. "Don't be afraid."

Tinya froze again when she heard a dark, deep chuckle come from the trees, the yellow eyes narrowing in the blackness. "I am not afraid."

"Then come out," the girl insisted.

"Then you'll be afraid," the creature responded.

The girl shook her head, "I won't."

"Hm," the creature said, and moved forward. Tinya watched as solid form started to surround the pair of the eyes as the creature slowly emerged from the darkness, and soft light revealed his being. Standing before her was a tall, wolf-like young man, dressed in a form-fitting black coat and black leather pants. His dark hair hung well past his shoulders and curled at the ends, with an unusual white streak running down the side, like a lightning bolt ripping its way through a midnight sky.

"I know exactly who you are," she said.

"Do you?" he asked darkly. _Go ahead and say it. Beast. Monster. Evil._

"You're my puppy dog!"

"…What?…"

"My puppy dog!"

Cham snickered from a branch above them.

"You follow me around and watch over me whenever I come to the forest," the girl happily explained, "but I didn't know you could change forms like Cham!"

Cham jumped down from the trees. "Not quite like me," he smiled.

"Idiot, I am not your _pet_," he spat, insulted at the notion. "I am Timber Wolf, King of the Rawlian jungle. I follow you to protect you, because like it or not some of the beasts in this forest see you as nothing more than food."

"And what do you see me as?" Tinya asked innocently.

"Tch –" Taken aback, Timber Wolf hesitated for a moment before turning away. "A nuisance."

"Huh?" Tinya and Cham said simultaneously.

"You're always messing around here, getting into trouble," Timber Wolf growled.

"Oh well I'm sorry, didn't know I was such a burden to you," Tinya said, crossing her arms and also facing the other direction. Cham nervously shifted his eyes between them.

"Well you are, and it's best if you never come back," Timber Wolf said coldly.

Tinya slowly turned around, disbelief and sadness pouring out of her grey eyes. She walked up behind him.

"You don't mean that…" she whispered to the back of his hair. She touched his shoulder, but Timber Wolf turned around and growled at her. Tinya retracted her hand in shock at the clear rejection, and ran off with tears in her eyes.

Cham stormed up to Timber Wolf. "What the hell was that?!"

Timber Wolf sighed. "Don't you get it? The humans want to tear this forest down. It's best if the little beastie doesn't get involved. Whose side will she be on anyway? Knowing her, she'd just get caught in the crossfire…"

"Well I know whose side she'd be on!" Cham yelled. Timber Wolf turned to glare at him.

"Glare at me all you want. _Do_ whatever you want. But Tinya's my friend, and you have to give her a chance. Now if you'll excuse me, _my king_," Cham mock-bowed before leaving Timber Wolf's presence.


	3. Chapter 3

Cham used his Reep ID badge to get into the Presidential house that night, and made his way as a fly to Tinya's room. He sat backwards on her chair and she sat on the edge of her bed while he told her everything; that he was Reep Daggle, the impending destruction of Rawl, and that Timber Wolf was just concerned about her safety.

The next day Tinya was in the forest again, having managed to manipulate the Durgo sisters into a shopping spree so she could easily escape. She touched the bark of the tree trunks she passed by, remembering that they were scheduled to be cut down. She wore a white hoodie, unzipped over a black tank top. She shoved her hands into the pockets of her red skinny jeans as she sighed, lost in deep thought. Tinya didn't notice a group of three eighteen-year-old guys behind her.

"Eh, we need to get out of this forest fast," one of them said.

"Why? You don't believe those fairy tales do you? 'Beware the Rawlian beasts', woooooh," another guy joked, making a ghost face.

"Hey, who's that?" one of them pointed over at Tinya standing a distance away, back turned to them.

"Some bitch," the second guy spoke again.

"You guys thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Hell yeah man, let's go."

Tinya sighed despondently and was about to turn around when she was shoved hard from behind.

"Uff!" she fell, palms scraping on a particularly rough patch of forest ground.

"Ah jeez, I am so sorry, here let me help you up!" a young man offered a hand to her. Tinya frowned for a moment before taking his hand. He pulled her up, but then almost immediately shoved her again, this time into the arms of one of his friends. They shoved her back and forth and then pushed her to the ground again.

Suddenly a loud roar was heard all around them, reverberating through the forest, and the three guys looked up at their surroundings, confused and frightened.

Timber Wolf jumped down in his beast form and growled furiously at them.

"Holy shit! Look at the size of that thing!"

"It's one of those m-monsters!"

Timber Wolf roared and charged at them. He grabbed one by the ankle and threw him to the side. The man's back hit a tree and he shouted in pain as one of his lower ribs had broken. Timber Wolf charged at another young man and with one swipe he left a big gash on his back. Then he wacked him on the side of the head, knocking him out. The final guy, who had pushed Tinya, was already making his way out of the forest, but Timber Wolf was not about to let him go free. He chased after him, and manipulated the guy's direction of movement so that, unbeknownst to him, he would be led right off the edge of a cliff.

Timber Wolf watched the man plummet to the water below before going back to the woods. He changed to his humanoid form as he made his way to Tinya.

"You ok?" he inquired, pulling her up.

"Yeah," she smiled at him, but then winced slightly when she put weight on her foot.

"Can you walk?"

"Umm, my ankle kinda hurts – woah!" before she even finished her sentence, the ground swept up from beneath her feet and Timber Wolf was carrying her bridal style. When her surprise subsided, she smiled and rested her head on his shoulder as he walked her over to quiet pond.

But this was no ordinary pond. Tinya gasped in excitement as her eyes soaked in the marvelous sight before her. Hovering above the pond were hundreds of fireflies, casting a gorgeous illumination in the dimness of the twilight. Timber Wolf gently placed her down near the pond, and he climbed up on a nearby rock and took a seat. Chameleon Boy was busy as Reep Daggle today, so it was just the two of them.

"Wow!" Tinya laughed as she continued gazing at the natural beauty of the scene. Like candles floating above the water, the fireflies created a beautiful display of warm, golden hues over the water's rippling surface. It was as if the sun was broken up into little pieces, whose rays were finally mild enough to gaze at and appreciate for as long as one wished.

While Tinya was watching the fireflies, Timber Wolf was watching her. His golden eyes were filled with curiosity, intrigue, and maybe a touch of sadness. She reminded him of the purity he once had as a child.

"Sorry I got myself into trouble again," Tinya said, smiling sheepishly up at him, remembering his admonition from the other day.

"I'm the one who should be apologizing," Timber Wolf said. "You're not a nuisance, and you're not a burden. You can enter the woodlands anytime you want."

She smiled up at him, but then saw the concern in his eyes. "What wrong?"

Timber Wolf sighed deeply. "Nothing, I guess I'm just still upset at those guys. They saw you as nothing more than an object."

Tinya waited for a moment before asking, "What do you see me as?"

Timber Wolf narrowed his eyes at her, annoyed that she asked the same question from the other day. What did it matter how he saw her?

Tinya lied down on the grass and smiled at Timber Wolf. "Thanks for saving me."

Timber Wolf remained silent, for he considered it inappropriate to receive such thanks. He would guard her with his life if it came down to it.

Timber Wolf hopped down from his rock and gathered the sleeping Tinya in his arms. Exiting the forest, he made his way deep into the city, leaping from rooftop to rooftop.

When they arrived at the Presidential house, Reep secretly let them in. Timber Wolf carried her up to her room and tucked her in bed. He held her hand for a moment before turning to leave.

"Goodnight…" Tinya mumbled in her sleep. Timber Wolf paused and looked back at her as he crouched on the windowsill, his long jacket, his hair, and the curtains gently flowing from the night breeze.

"Goodnight, my little beastie."

…..

In the following weeks they continued to spend time with each other and the Rawlian creatures. Reep and Timber Wolf did what they could to derail the planned destruction of the forest, but their attempts were proving futile. Any bill that tried to prevent the city's expansion was vetoed. Some massive drone robots had already come a couple times to start clearing a few sites, but Timber Wolf would destroy them all. Nonetheless, the impending devastation loomed over the Rawlian king like a heavy rain cloud, darkening his skies.

"Timber Wolf! Timber Wolf!" Tinya called from the distance as the wolf-man walked. The humans did say every cloud has a silver lining, didn't they?

"I'm here," he said softly, in his usual tone. He waited for her to catch up and they walked together.

"A little fox told me you were human once, is it true?" Tinya asked.

"…Yeah."

"What happened?"

"My humanity was stolen from me," he looked at her, "and that's all I'm gonna say about it."

Tinya looked down as they took a few more steps, and then hugged his arm.

"You're you. That's something no one can steal from you. You decide who you are! Gotta go back home now, see you tomorrow!"

Timber Wolf watched the girl run off.

…..

Orange danced to the latest pop song that was playing in the supermall as she tried on sample designer lip gloss. White and Purple were in the photo booth taking pictures of themselves making peace signs and duck faces. They came out and met up with Orange.

"Where's Tinya?" they all asked each other simultaneously.

"I thought she was with you guys!" Orange said, starting to panic.

"Idiot, only two people are allowed in the photo booth at a time! We thought she was with _you_!" White yelled.

"Actually, she told me she was going to the bathroom," Purple said, scratching her head.

The White Durgo face-palmed. "We are so getting fired."

Meanwhile in the forest, Tinya was laughing and dangling upside down on a branch, and Cham was an orange monkey dangling from his tail.

"Don't fall beastie," Timber Wolf warned from below, walking by in his beast-form.

"I won't! Hey look what I can do!" she called out, but when she looked at Timber Wolf again her laughter stopped. She pulled herself right-side up again to make sure she was seeing things right. Cham turned into a bird and flew up and perched himself on a higher branch. Tinya frowned, and climbed down the tree. When she landed, she stood behind the tree and peaked around.

There in the distance was Timber Wolf…

…talking to another wolf. A wolf with a dazzling white coat and exotic blue-green eyes.

Tinya waited until the white wolf jogged away before slowly walking forward. Timber Wolf saw her and changed into his human-like form.

"Somethin' wrong?" Timber Wolf asked her. Tinya shook her head. Timber Wolf raised an eyebrow before turning around to leave.

"She's beautiful," Tinya remarked, which made Timber Wolf pause. "What's her name?"

Timber Wolf's head turned slightly but his back was still facing her.

"Her name is Rosaleah."

"Wow, beautiful name too…"

Timber Wolf's yellow eyes narrowed before he faced forward again and continued walking away from her. Tinya tried to take a few hesitant steps toward him.

"I-Is she your mate?" she called out.

"Excuse me?" Timber Wolf asked. Cham smirked from the trees.

"Well, you're the King of Rawl," Tinya shrugged. "Surely you have a queen…"

"Quit being foolish," Timber Wolf growled. "I rule these forests all on my own. I don't need anyone else."

"Oho well excuuuuse me then!" Cham yelled from above and flew off. Timber Wolf rolled his eyes and ignored him.

Tinya visibly cheered up again, and came up beside Timber Wolf to walk with him. They reached the edge of the forest just as the sun was starting to set. It was cooler, and Tinya rubbed her bare arms, she was just wearing shorts and a small t-shirt today. Timber Wolf removed his long, robe-like jacket and draped it over Tinya, who smiled at the gesture and sat down on the grass to watch the sunset. Timber Wolf remained standing, leaning his bare back against a tree with his hands in his pockets.

[_Ermaine – Don't Believe in Love_]

"Timber Wolf, can I be your queen?" Tinya asked after a few minutes.

"…What?" Timber Wolf looked at her, eyes wide.

"Well, I love these woods as much as you do," she explained. "And, I want to be there for you, just like you're always there for me –"

"No." Timber Wolf said flatly, cutting her off. He pushed himself off the tree and took a few steps forward. Tinya watched his bare back for a moment before getting up and walking towards him. Timber Wolf's long black coat dragged behind her as she walked. She came around him and stood in front of him, and put both of her hands on his chest.

"Timber Wolf, I love you," Tinya said, and reached up on her tippy toes to kiss him. Just before their lips touched, Timber Wolf turned his head away and gently put his hands on her shoulders to push her back down.

"There _is_ no such thing as love," Timber Wolf said, closing his eyes. "Especially not between your kind and my kind."

Tinya backed away from him, shocked and hurt at his words. She wasn't a little girl anymore – she knew they were "different" from each other, but she's never felt more connected to any other person in her life.

"H-How can you say that?" she almost laughed in disbelief. "Love is… is everywhere! It's – it's the flowers that bloom, the sunset, the fireflies, all of that is love!"

"What about the bad stuff, huh?!" Timber Wolf growled angrily. "When people attack you for who you are, or try to destroy your home! When the people closest to you betray you…"

Timber Wolf walked back to the tree and sat down, taking a few deep breaths to calm his anger.

Tinya slowly came up to him and sat in front of him.

"I will never betray you," she whispered, and leaned forward to rest her head on his chest. She listened to the calming sound of his heartbeat. It was a strong, steady rhythm, confidence in every beat. Tinya smiled to herself.

"What?" Timber Wolf asked softly.

"Royalty flows through your veins, my king," Tinya said, eyelids getting heavy.

Timber Wolf chuckled quietly. "Go to sleep now, beastie."

When Tinya was finally asleep, Timber Wolf leaned his head back against the tree and sighed deeply, closing his eyes. His eyes opened again, a touch of sorrow in their liquid golden depths as he stared at the dark blue sky, the last traces of red, pink, and orange fading in the horizon.

_Put these dreams over everything, money over wedding rings,_

_If you believe in love then you'll just believe in anything._

_'Cuz that shit ain't real._

_Man I swear that shit ain't real…_


	4. Chapter 4

Tinya woke up the next morning to find herself back in her bed at the Presidential house, with her shoes removed and still wearing Timber Wolf's black coat.

'_Uh oh, he forgot to take it,' _the girl thought as she yawned and stretched. _'I'll return it to him today!'_

After a cool morning shower and a filling breakfast, Tinya hesitantly opened and closed the door of her room, tiptoeing out and down the hallway. She made it to the elevator without seeing her mother or the Durgo sisters.

When she reached the ground floor, she hoped to make a quick bee-line towards the exit, but on her way there, the three women ran up to her and surrounded her.

"There you are you little liar," the Purple girl said. Tinya stuck her tongue out at her.

"Listen you, you better stop double-crossing us or you're gonna get us fired!" the White sister scolded.

"Yeah!" said Orange. The White one frowned at her.

"And you, stop falling for her crap!"

"What? It's not like she's gonna meet Brin Londo or something," Orange rolled her eyes.

"Who?" Tinya asked.

"You've never heard the stories of Brin Londo?" Purple asked, looking at Tinya like she was stupid. Tinya shook her head, clutching Timber Wolf's folded black coat to her abdomen, hoping they wouldn't take notice. Although she was a bit curious, she hoped that if they tell her this story, she could distract them again and escape.

Cham, in his human form Reep Daggle, had just walked by without any of the girls noticing. He went behind a wall when he heard Timber Wolf's real name. His green eyes narrowed to hear what the women were talking about.

"Brin Londo was this kid who went missing in the Rawlian forest," the Orange Durgo began. "His father, renowned scientist Mar Londo, went after him. Neither of them came out of there for like months."

"Yeah and when people went to search for them, they found this mysterious lab that was partially destroyed, and Londo's mauled body lying in the center," the Purple one continued.

"It's probably just a myth!" White sprang in. "But seriously Tinya, you need to stop going to those woods, weird stuff happens there!"

"And there are s-scary monsters!" Orange shuddered.

"Yeah, did you hear about those three guys – Uff!" the Purple Durgo was cut off as Reep bumped into her.

"Oh! Sorry! Hehehe," Reep shyly rubbed the back of his red-orange hair.

"Watch where you're going stupid intern!" White reprimanded.

"Hey, where's Tinya?" Orange asked, looking around.

…..

Tinya would have to thank Cham later, but as she quickly made her way to the Rawlian woodlands, she couldn't get the story she just heard out of her mind.

"Timber Wolf? Timber Wolf!" she called.

"I'm here," he said, walking to her. Tinya lost her train of thought when she saw his shirtless body. In the dimness of the previous night, she hadn't been able to fully observe the details of his sculpted abdomen, broad shoulders, and muscled arms. She shook her head and remembered what she came here for.

"Here's your jacket," she said, presenting to him the black, neatly folded material. Timber Wolf took it without a word and draped it over himself.

"Umm, I wanted to ask…" Tinya began, speaking to Timber Wolf's back as he pulled his hair out of his jacket and adjusted his collar. "I heard this strange story today, about a kid named Brin Londo."

"Oh really," Timber Wolf asked.

"Yeah, he was a kid who disappeared in the forest many years ago… He was a human who played here just like us… Have you heard of him?"

Timber Wolf slowly turned around to partially face Tinya, and the girl stood there stunned at the look in his piercing eyes. His eyes have never scared her, until now.

"N-no… so that means… and your father –"

"I killed him," Timber Wolf declared, and from his tone, he did not regret it.

Tinya stood there, shocked and dumbfounded. Her arms felt numb on her sides. Timber Wolf took a step forward, but Tinya took a step back. She shook her head at him in disbelief and ran away.

…..

Tinya paced back and forth at a clearing just outside the forest, mind buzzing with questions that just left her more confused. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, taking a deep breath.

Timber Wolf watched comfortably from a tree, well hidden by the branches and leaves.

"Tinya?" someone asked. The girl gasped and turned around, startled.

"Oh! Jo Nah! Heh, what are you doing here?" the girl asked nervously. She's known Jo Nah for several years. At nineteen, he was already CEO of Virtual Tech, the company that plans to build over the Rawlian forests.

"I was just at a meeting at the Presidential house," Jo Nah explained. "My company's concerned about the drones that have been destroyed…"

Timber Wolf raised an eyebrow, knowing full-well what happened to those drones. Cham swooped down beside him, having also been at that meeting.

"They were going to call for an investigation of the destroyed bots," Cham whispered once he changed from bird to his usual self. "But instead, various leaders decided to just go ahead with the deforestation. I saw the blueprints for the newly designed machines… Timber Wolf, they're going to be bigger and more destructive than ever. They plan to obliterate Rawl by sunset tomorrow!"

Timber Wolf narrowed his eyes and growled, and looked back down at the scene below.

"You shouldn't hang around too close to this hostile jungle area, it's too dangerous for a young lady like yourself," Jo Nah said to Tinya, stepping closer. "Heh, 'beware the Rawlian beasts' was what all our parents told us, no?"

"Heheh, yeah," said Tinya.

"Anyway, I'm meeting with the city mayor later today to discuss the plans for finally clearing these forsaken woods," Jo Nah continued. "I was wondering if we could maybe go out for lunch or something before then."

"Hmph," Timber Wolf scoffed from his branch. What does it take to get these human men off his beastie? No matter, Tinya would never–

"I'd love to!"

Timber Wolf stared down at them in shock. Cham looked from Timber Wolf next him to Tinya and Jo Nah below and then back at Timber Wolf. Jo Nah offered Tinya his arm, and she took it, and they walked back down to the city holding each other like that.

Cham nervously looked at Timber Wolf. "Y-Your majesty I –"

Timber Wolf held up one hand to silence him. "Forget it," he said, and jumped up and landed perfectly on another branch.

"The humans plan to destroy our territory before the sun sets tomorrow," Timber Wolf called down to him, slowly disappearing in the darkness of the trees. "It's time to set our plan into motion."

…..

Tinya didn't eat much at the café, only moving the food around with her fork and taking a few nervous sips of water.

"Everything ok Tinya?" Jonah asked across from her.

Tinya sighed and put her fork down. "It's just… at Rawl I…"

"Oh no, you didn't come across one of those monsters did you?" Jo Nah inquired.

"Huh?" Tinya asked, and grew stiff when Jo Nah leaned in closer and put his hand over hers on the dining table.

"Don't worry. By this time tomorrow those woodlands will be cleared, not a single tree will be left standing. All the monsters and beasts will die off, and they'll never harm you ever again."

Tinya yanked her hand away. "No one harmed me! M-Maybe there's more to the stories we've been told. They've been hurt, and betrayed… If we would just hear them out –"

Tinya was cut off by Jo Nah's laughter. "Don't be silly, Tinya. You're acting like any of these monsters can actually talk –"

Now it was Tinya's turn to cut Jo Nah off. "Stop calling them monsters! They're charming, intelligent, and proud… And you're threatening their homeland!"

Tinya stood up, threw her napkin over her plate and stormed out of the restaurant.

Back at the Presidential house, Tinya found her mother walking down the hallway with several security personnel and city leaders.

"Tinya, there you are. I've fired the Durgo sisters since they've consistently failed to keep you from that forest. You'll be escorted by my guards tomorrow and accompany Jo Nah and I as we oversee the destruction of Rawl."

"What! But mom you'll destroy the Rawlians' home!"

"Tinya! Not another word of this nonsense! I hope you weren't at Rawl today, were you?"

"Well I was!" Tinya said defiantly and crossed her arms. Then Tinya slumped her shoulders and added, "But just now I was at a restaurant with Jo Nah."

"Well good, Jo Nah is the CEO of Virtual Tech. You should date him, maybe even one day marry him. He'll give you a comfortable future."

"Uuggghhhhh!" Tinya ran to her room and slammed the door.

"You two, stand by her bedroom door and make sure she doesn't leave," the President ordered two of her guardsmen, who saluted before leaving.

...

The next day Winema's guards walked Tinya out of her room as per direct order from the President. Tinya could not, under any circumstance, enter the forest today, as today was the scheduled tearing down of the Rawlian woodlands to make way for the vastly expanding metropolis. Tinya was guided into a helicopter with Jo Nah and her mother to fly over and survey the destruction of Rawl.

"Tinya, there's something I wanted to tell you," Jo Nah looked over at Tinya, who sat stubbornly in her seat with a sour look on her face. "I really like you –"

"Well I hate you!"

"Tinya! Stop being so childish!" Winema scolded from the front passenger seat. The helicopter lifted off, and in a relatively short ride they hovered above the grasslands immediately before the Rawlian woods. There already was a massive fleet of destruction mechadrones and tanks with the Virtual Tech logo on them, ready to begin the tear-down.

Just then Timber Wolf emerged from the trees and landed on a great rock in his beast form, growling viciously at the fleet of mechanical enemies before him.

"Timber Wolf!" Tinya shouted.

"That beast is called something?" Jo Nah scoffed.

Tinya looked at him square in the face. "Yes. His name is Brin Londo."

Winema turned around in her seat and looked at her daughter in disbelief.

"What did you just say?" the President asked, but just then, Timber Wolf released a mighty roar that echoed across the entire Rawlian woodlands. This was a war cry, and all the beasts and creatures, large and small, leaped and emerged from behind the trees and stood behind Timber Wolf like an army.

The Virtual Tech mechadrones and tanks advanced, spewing fire from their cannons and shooting missiles from their blasters. Timber Wolf roared a second time, and the beasts charged.

The large winged creatures used their talons to bend the metal blasters spewing out the fires. The squirrels and other small rodents went inside the robots and gnawed at their internal wiring connections. Cham turned into various powerful animals to upturn the tanks and pummel the mechadrone bots. Timber Wolf stood out among the Rawlian warriors, blitzing through the tanks and robots, leaving trails of dented and burning metal in his wake.

Timber Wolf received a hit that sent him crashing into a boulder. When he re-emerged from the debris, he growled and held his head like it was paining him, and howled to the sky. Jo Nah, Tinya, and the President watched from their hovering helicopter as Timber Wolf grew larger than ever before, with deadlier claws, spikes coming out of his back, and a look filled with rage, vengeance, and a thirst for kill. He crushed the robot that had hit him, and charged ahead.

"Doesn't this thing have missiles?" the President asked the pilot next to her. The pilot lowered the helicopter closer to the ground and hit a large button on the control panel and an artillery shot out from underneath the helicopter and hit the ground near where Timber Wolf was.

"No!" Tinya screamed as the red flames reflected in her shocked eyes.

But then, emerging from the blaze of the explosion was Timber Wolf, and he leaped right towards them.

"What's he doing?" the pilot shouted. He cranked his joystick towards himself to try to quickly raise altitude, but it was too late. Timber Wolf had grabbed the tail of the helicopter and they crashed to the ground.

The smoke cleared, and Winema was found coughing somewhere in the grass, having fallen out of the helicopter upon impact. "Tinya!" she screamed.

"Mom?!" Tinya and Jo Nah were still alive in the downed chopper, whose bent and broken blades wobbled as they turned. Tinya looked at the pilot, who was unconscious with blood oozing from his temple.

"You," growled a demonic, hate-filled voice through the fiery black smoke. Winema gasped and looked forward, and there was Timber Wolf's beast form coming toward her, every footstep pounding a reverberating _thud_ onto the ground.

"You will pay for the experiments you allowed, no, _condoned_, under your administration," Timber Wolf growled at her.

Tinya and Jo Nah had just climbed out of the damaged helicopter. "Mom? What experiments is he talking about?"

Timber Wolf growled, and then charged at the President. Tinya jumped in front of her mom, arms spread out, sad grey eyes looking up at Timber Wolf.

"Timber Wolf! Brin… I'm sorry about whatever happened to you, but like I said, you determine who you are! You – AAHH!"

"Tinya!" Winema screamed.

Timber Wolf had knocked Tinya into a nearby tree with the swing of one powerful arm. Tinya fell to the ground, unconscious. In his vendetta, Timber Wolf did not recognize Tinya. She was not his little beastie, but rather an obstruction to an enemy target. However, Timber Wolf paused when he saw her limp form. The President and Jo Nah rushed over to Tinya as Timber Wolf put his hands against his head, snarling, flame-colored eyes battling between rage and control.

"Pull back! Pull back!" one of the men shouted when it was clear the Rawlian creatures were not going to let up.

Timber Wolf finally changed back into his human-like form, regaining his sense of self. His eyes were filled with horror when he saw the President and Jo Nah carrying Tinya's unconscious form into an emergency vehicle.

"No…" he uttered, and dropped to his knees, the king having no strength left to stand. He gritted his teeth and punched the ground. Any feelings of joy from the victory of the battle were trumped from his anguish at hurting Tinya. Darkness fell throughout Rawl as smoke, flames, and the sound of Timber Wolf's wretched howl drifted up towards the sunset sky.


	5. Chapter 5

[_Bjork – All Is Full of Love_]

"Why isn't she waking up?" Winema angrily asked the android physician.

"Madame President, I regret to inform you that your daughter is in a coma," Brainiac-5 said, reading the data from the robotic machine that was taking virtual scans over Tinya's body in one of the Presidential hospital rooms that night.

"What!" Winema put a hand over her mouth and Jo Nah put his hand on the President's shoulder as Brainiac-5 brought up an image of Tinya's brain on a holographic screen.

"From the analytical readings of her brain waves, the only brain region that can be activated to awaken her from the coma is the area deep within her cerebral cortex that controls romantic feelings," the android doctor explained.

"In layman's terms, please?" Jo Nah asked.

"In other words, she could wake up if she was given, for example, a kiss. A kiss of true love," Brainiac-5 said. Winema and Jo Nah exchanged confused glances.

"Right now she needs rest," Brainiac-5 said, turning the virtual machines off and leading them out of the hospital room. They turned the lights off and shut the door, leaving Tinya alone in the dark room, illuminated only by the moonlight coming from the window.

But she was not alone.

Timber Wolf and Reep Daggle emerged from the shadows of the dark room and stood over Tinya's bed.

"Your majesty?" Reep said, his usually cheerful, freckled face filled with concern as he looked up at Timber Wolf.

Timber Wolf's solemn eyes were locked on Tinya. It was disconcerting seeing his lively and energetic beastie so… still, and quiet, frozen in time.

"…Get Jo Nah back in here," Timber Wolf said gravely.

After a few minutes, a frustrated Jo Nah stumbled into Tinya's hospital room as Reep Daggle dragged him by the arm. "Hey, I don't understand what you're… You! You're that monstrous freak who tried to kill us!" Jo Nah pointed directly at Timber Wolf.

In a flash, Timber Wolf had Jo Nah up against a wall, growling in his face.

"My king, we need him," Reep reminded him. Timber Wolf put Jo Nah down and roughly pushed him toward Tinya's bed and stood there with his arms crossed.

"You love her don't you?" Reep asked Jo Nah.

"Y-Yeah… I do," Jo Nah said, looking at Tinya. Timber Wolf silently growled.

"Then kiss her. Wake her out of her coma," said Reep.

"You sure that's gonna work?" Jo Nah asked skeptically.

"…We have to try," Reep shrugged.

Jo Nah sighed and bent down over Tinya and took her hand. He really did think she was beautiful. He had liked her perky and slightly sarcastic personality ever since they were young. It would be a privilege if she were his…

Jo Nah leaned in, but felt eyes on him.

"Excuse you," he turned to Timber Wolf, who had been watching them. Timber Wolf growled in annoyance but then Reep pulled his arm to back away. Timber Wolf angrily yanked his arm from Reep's grip. He ran a hand through his hair and crossed his arms, walking to a shadowed area at the other end of the room, back turned to them.

_You'll be given love. You'll be taken care of._

Jo Nah took one more look at Tinya's unconscious form, and leaned down. After a moment's hesitation, he kissed her.

Timber Wolf slowly turned around, his golden eyes filled with worry, jealousy, and hope, watching them carefully and discreetly from the distance.

_You'll be given love. You have to trust it._

Jo Nah ended the kiss, and waited…

But she didn't wake up.

_Maybe not from these sources…_

_Maybe not from the direction you are staring at._

"Why isn't she waking up?" Reep asked, walking to Jo Nah's side.

"I-I don't know… I kissed her, you saw me," Jo Nah said, confused. Meanwhile, Timber Wolf's fists balled up at his sides as he growled fiercely.

"You're useless! Get out of here!" Timber Wolf grabbed Jo Nah and dragged him by the back of his collar towards the door. Reep rushed ahead and opened the door for him as Timber Wolf threw Jo Nah out. "And I better not see any of your robots in our land ever again!" Timber Wolf warned before slamming the door.

Timber Wolf leaned his back against the door and sighed, a hand covering his eyes. He dropped his hand back down against his side and rested the back of his head against the door, shutting his eyes.

"Timber Wolf…" Reep said silently, back in his Cham form. Timber Wolf reopened his eyes, filled with confusion and hurt, and made his way to Tinya's bed. He knelt beside it and took her hands in his.

"Beastie," he silently called, but she just laid there, still as a statue, motionless as the dead.

"Tinya… I'm sorry. I know I can't bring you back…"

Cham watched his friends silently.

"…but I'll be right here," Timber Wolf continued. "I'll protect you…"

He kissed her hand, and looked at her again. "And you _are_ my queen. You reign over what little heart I have left."

He leaned in closer and stroked her hair. "Just wake up," he whispered, and waited a moment.

"Wake up," he whispered again, with more ache in his voice. But her eyes remained closed. He winced and clutched his jacket, feeling pain in his chest. He ran a hand through his hair and balled it up into a fist as the realization hit him, hard, that he would never see his beastie's eyes open ever again.

Timber Wolf would have to accept it.

He would learn to accept it. Just as he learned to accept all that he had lost in the past.

Cham's sad, tearful eyes looked to the ground.

Timber Wolf leaned close to Tinya's face and whispered, "Goodnight… my little beastie."

He kissed her. Everywhere. Her lips, her cheeks, her nose, her forehead. Her jawline, her neck. All the kisses he wished he could have given her. All the love he wanted to show her but held back because he didn't believe in it. He didn't believe in _her._

_Trust your head around, it's all around you._

_All is full of love._

He rested his head on her chest and listened to her heartbeat, just as she had done to him. It was a soft, shy rhythm, quick-paced and pure. So full of life, and innocence – his beacon of light in his black and lonely world.

"I'm here," a gentle voice said. Timber Wolf felt a hand stroking his hair. His eyes shot open and he looked up to see Tinya softly smiling up at him.

Cham looked back up, surprised and relieved.

"Tinya!" Timber Wolf drew her into a tight hug, shock on his face. He looked at her again and held her face in his hands, stroking her cheeks with his fingers, making sure she was real.

Tinya giggled and smiled at Timber Wolf, and he smiled back. He kissed her once again, more deeply this time.

Tinya wrapped her arms around his shoulders and whispered in his ear, "Take me home, my king."

Cham joyfully ran to the window and opened it, changing into a bird and flying out. Timber Wolf removed the covers and gathered Tinya up in his arms and made his way to the window.

"As you wish, my queen."

That night they kissed and kissed at the firefly pond, rulers of the forest, lovers of the night.

Cham smiled from a branch and turned into a bird, and flew off into the moonlight.


End file.
